


Stories of the Second Self: Profiling

by John_Steiner



Series: Alter Idem [41]
Category: Police - Fandom, Urban Fantasy - Fandom, lockdown - Fandom, police profiling - Fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:14:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22523068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/John_Steiner/pseuds/John_Steiner
Summary: While reviewing coroner audio logs during a pre-dawn drive, Lieutenant Reigns, the Fae detective of Cincinnati PD sees two people walking down the road with their faces and heads completely covered. Suspecting them to be vampires, Reigns takes extra precautions before signalling them to stop for questions, but not the usual questions of a profiling police stop.
Series: Alter Idem [41]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1618813





	Stories of the Second Self: Profiling

"No accelerants," Lieutenant Reigns listened to on the flash drive audio recording while he drove home, "No fuels, and a center of ignition that doesn't make sense."

It was the audio autopsy log Dr. Wisner made regarding the incinerated vampire. Wisner distributed it to detectives and other officers assigned to Homicide and the newly created Pentacaste Division in the Cincinnati Police Department. Reigns was on his fourth play-through while driving alongside one of the city parks in the early spring crap weather before daybreak.

Captain Barnes didn't like that Reigns wanted to work nights, but couldn't argue against Reigns' desire to throw himself into this case. Something about Wisner's report gnawed at Reigns, and he felt that the answer was staring him in the face, if only he could see it.

"Speaking with the Arson and Bomb Unit," Wisner's voice went on, "I've concluded that somehow the conditions of a flashover were created without using heat compression with layers of smoke or confined spaces. Instead, I believe I'm seeing a buildup of heat so rapid that the entire front of the victim reached combustion temperature simultaneously."

Reigns noticed two people walking along the road with what looked like multiple layers of clothing and hoods over their heads. He stopped the recording and flashed his department vehicle's emergency lights and siren for a brief moment. The pair of people turned their heads partway, but not enough for Reigns to see their faces. That alone was enough to perk his interest, and he pulled over while giving the siren another half second sounding.

The two stopped but did not turn around, instead moved their arms to suggest they conceded to the moment. He's seen the gesture enough with black youth, himself included at that age, when subjected to random police stop. Reigns opened the door and set one hoof out onto the asphalt.

Reigns brought the car's loudspeaker handset to his mouth. "Cincinnati PD. I need you two to turn around completely, and keep your hands in plain view, please."

The mirrored surface of polarized face shields told him everything he needed to know about the pair. Pulling his sidearm out of its holster, Reigns removed the current magazine to insert in its place a magazine loaded with tracer rounds. From there, he holstered it again, but left the top strap unsnapped and stepped out of the vehicle completely.

"Is there something wrong, officer?" one of the vampires asked.

Reigns couldn't tell which one spoke, and paced around to the west of them. "Take those off."

"It's gonna be daylight soon," the same voice replied.

"You got," Reigns looked over their shoulder to gauge, "about half an hour yet. If you face me, you'll be pointed west, and so you should be fine. Now I need you to take those off and pull the hoods halfway back."

With a sigh, one vampire did, but the other followed suit without verbalizing any protest. Solid black eyes, bloodless skin, and hints that their mouths were populated by curved razors.

"Tell me your names," Reigns instructed.

"Uh, Samuel Parker," the ethnically white vampire answered.

"Shawn Hemsley," the black female vampire replied, "Sir, we're not doing anything wrong."

"You have any ID on you?" Reigns inquired, ignoring the complaint.

Both reached for pockets, which Reigns watched carefully, but without letting any outward expression of heightened alert show. Each one passed over their ID, the man producing a drivers license.

"This shows that you're still alive, sir," Reigns pointed out, and held onto the photo IDs. "Do you have anything more recent?"

"Can't get the DMV to issue me anything," Samuel complained, "They say produce a death certificate, and then when I come back with that some other guy told me that the deceased aren't authorized to drive motor vehicles. The even refused me a temporary ID."

"But she has one," Reigns pointed to Shawn.

"I filed documents with the court," Shawn explained, "I had to place my estate with my cousin, and then prove I could show up at the hearing to state my medical status."

"Why haven't you done that, Mr. Parker?" Reigns asked.

"Can't get off work," Samuel answered, "My boss insists I work days, and won't let me use sick days since I don't get sick."

"Sir, you need to rectify this as soon as possible," Reigns informed him, "Now the reason I stopped you is because there have been reports of suspicious activity in this area."

"We weren't stalking," Shawn said without sounding hasty.

"Have you see anything suspicious or out of place," Reigns asked, "Anyone carrying flammables or sources of ignition?"

"Serious," Shawn asked.

"Yes," Reigns said, "Have you seen any fires or smoke damage?"

"No," Samuel and Shawn both said, and looked at each other.

"What about a person or people following you around," Reigns added, "Anyone who seemed to focused on your whereabouts or activities?"

"Wait," Samuel bid for clarification, "You're asking if someone's been stalking vampires?"

"Yes or no, sir," Reigns reiterated a bit curt.

"No officer," Shawn responded, clearly used to answering a cop's questions. "At night we'd notice them before they saw us. Anyone sees one of us at night pretty much goes the other way."

"Alright," Reigns nodded and passed their IDs back, "Thank you for your cooperation, and Mr. Parker it's in your best interest to update your ID."

Reigns clopped back to his car and got in. However, he didn't turn on the engine, and instead studied the two vampires. They resumed down the road while pulling their cover back over.

It was a pattern of Open Feeders to walk the streets in pairs, so that one could spot for the other. Yet, amid stalking they wouldn't have been close together like Shawn and Samuel. Shawn's quickness with the answers reminded Reigns of the coaching his father gave him as a kid about how to deal with police officers, and not make them edgy enough to blow him out of his shoes.

"Just minding our own business, officer," Reigns paraphrased to himself, while watching the couple walk far enough that morning mist enshrouded them.

Turning the engine over, Reigns didn't immediately pull back into the lane, and instead cast his gaze into the trees of the park. His sight couldn't penetrate through the haze better than human eyes, but if there were magic-based illusions Reigns' vision would reveal the truth regardless.

Resuming down the road, Reigns past the couple again who kept walking with their hands in coat pockets. He checked the rear view mirror to see that they had both turned their heads up, likely looking at his vehicle through their face shields, but without suggesting they waited for him to be out of sight.


End file.
